Improvement in steam-pipe couplings for railroad-cars



am cfm JOSEPH connue, ori-PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA;

Letters Patent No. 110,114, dated December 13, 1870.

IMPROVEMENT IN STEAM-P4PE coUPlliNes Fon RAlLRoADfcARs.

-The Schedule referred to in these Lettera Patent and parto the lame.

I, 'JOSEPH-CONNER, of the city of Philadelphia and i State ofPennsylvania, have invented. an Improved Coupling for Steam-Pipes in aTrain of Cars, of which the tbliowingis a. speciiication.

The object of my inventionis such a coupling of the' pipes at each endot' the cars, and the front car with the tender, as to admit of a freelateral movement and a vertical movement of each car without strainingthe coupling; and also a perfect adaptation of the coupling of the carstogether, and 4the front car to the tender. A

The nature of the invention consists in making a rigid connection of ashort pipe at the ends of each car, with the steam-pipe leading throughit for'warnring the same, and connecting with one of these short' pipesa. series of pipes having a universal movement,. bymeans of suitablejoints provided with stungboxes, and with the other pipe acoupling-socket adapted to the outer end of the combined pipe ofuniversal movement.

The cars in the train are all brought together with the universaljoint-pipes alike, either at the front or rear end, and, as they arecoupled, the' steam-couplingsare connected, as'herei'nafter described.

I connect each secfion of the coupling with separate branches ofthesteam-pipe ofthe tender, which leads from the boiler, for the purpose ofconnecting either section of the coupling which may happen to be on theconnecting end oi' the car with its counterpart. Each branch-pipeisprovided with a suitable stop-cock.

'.lo enable others skilled in the art to which my-irnprovementappertains to make and use my invention, I will now give a detaileddescription thereof.

In the accompanyingY drawing, which makes a part of thisspecification-.-

Figure lis a top view of the coupling detached from the cars.

Figure 2is a, side elevation of the same.

Figure 3 is avertical section at the line x :v of fig. 1.

Figure ,4 is au edge view 'of the gland h.

Figure 5 is a side View of the pipe. G.

Figure 6 is alike view of one of the pipes M, elbows parts.

'- The-coupling is made in two detachable parts, forminga combinedcoupling, as represented in the draw# ing, in which g. 1 is a top viewand fig. 2 a side elevation.

The .'short'pipe A at one end of the couplinghas a rigid connection withthe steam-pipe at one end of the car, and the T-pipe A' at the other endof the saine, with the steam-pipe at the contiguous end of the next carin the train.

To give a-tirm connection of the pipe A', the projection a fits intosome ixed part of the car.

The pipe A is held securely by means of a jam-nut or otherwise. l

To the inner end of the pipe A one end of the tube D has ascrew-connection, as shown in tig. 3. On the other end of the tube thereis a'nut, E, seen in detail in figs. 8 and 9, which bears upon thewasher ll, that 'is'seated on the end of the tube D,.which surrounds thetube D.

The said tube D' has a left-hand thread, e, on its periphery, whichconnects with the thread e' on the inner surface of the hollow cylinderF, which has at its ont-er end right-hand inclined slots,'f f, so thatas- -the said cylinder is turned in the direction of th ar row, by meansot' its radial arms g g g g, lwhen connecting-pins, with which the othersection. of the coupling device is provided, are brought into said slots ff, as hereinafter described, the slots and the-screwtogether. Apawl then falls into connection with' the ratchet-wheel B on the -hub bof the cylinder F, and

.secures the coupling of the two sections.

The screw-threads e and e of the cylinder F and tube DT heilig of muchless pitch than that of the incline slots ff, a combined leverage isobtained, which is the object in forminga screw-connection between thecylinder and tube.

The T-ppe A' of the other section of the coupling is enlarged at itsouter end, and is constructed with a studing-box, It, to allow o f thefree turning of the lshort pipe G in the gland h', and thus admitting ofthe free up-and-down movement of the cars. The gland h is seen detachedin tig. 4, and the pipe G in ng. 5.

To the said pipe G is attached the elbow H and horizontal pipe G'.

The projection a of thepipe A serves as a connection with a xed part ofthe car, to prevent a twisting around of the pipe.

The remainder of this section is composed of vthe T-pipes J and. J shortpipes K K K K, connected therewith by the parts jjjj, and jam-nutsj'jjj', the elbowsL L L L, and intermediate pipes M M, and thehorizontal pipe N and parts attached to the same.

There are stuffing-boxes O O in the nuts jj and the eudsof the T-pipes JJI, which admit of the free horizontal movement of the said T- pipes JJ', to provide forany lateral movement of the cars.

Two of the pipes K, connected with corresponding ends of theT- pipes JJ', and-theintermediate joint M between said pipes'K, are shown detachedin ig.' 6.

The pipe N is provided with a'square part, l, to fit in a fixed part ofthe car to steadythe end of the seetion. g

The pipe N has a collar, m, between which and the nut P there is afollower, Q, seen in detail in iig. 4, that is provided with pins 'n n,which enter the'in- -clined slots ff of the cylinder F, above described,when the two sections are brought together.

-By turning the cylinder in the direction of the arrow, the said pinsare advanced in the inclinedslots and draw the pipe N and parts inconnection forward until the socket p in the forward end of the nut P,above described, is brought into connect-ion with the nut E on the endof the tube D, the socket and nut heiligV slightly conical to admit oftheir free connection.

As the cylinder F is turned around, its left-handed screw-connectionwith the tube D combines with the inclined slots ff in drawing the twosections of the coupling together. The reverse movement of the cylinderF, in uncoupling the device, uuscrews thc cylinder from thcitube D backto the point from which the coupling operation took it, ready for thenext coupling ofthe ears.

rlhe coupling, by its universal joints, is adapted to the coupling oftheears by the various devices in use, the straigtcnng up of the middlejoints, lengthening the coupling, and bringing them onvan angle, as seenin fig. 2, shortening the same.

The coupling above described may be used for the passage through thecars of either steam, air, or water for the various purposes to Vwhichthey may be ap- Dlied.

WhatI claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination of' the pipe A, tubes D D', and hollow cylinder F,having inclined grooves ff, the said parts being constructed andarranged in relation to each other, substantially in the manner and forthe purpose above described.

2. The connect-ion of the cylinder F with the tube D by means of inaleand female screws, which run in an opposite direction to the inclineslots f f of the cylinder, whereby a combined leverage is obtained incoupling the cars, substantially as described.

3. rlhe combination of the hollow nut I with the I pipe N, arranged andoperating in relation to the conical nut E on the outer end of the tubeD, as above specified.

4. The combination of the follower Q, having pins n n, with the pipe M,arranged and operating in relation to the inclines ff of the cylinder F,substantially as and for the purpose above set forth.

5. vIn combination with pipes A and N, tubes .D and D', cylinder F, andfollower Q, the pipe A and intermediate hollow links, constructedand'arranged as and for the purpose above described.

In testimony that the A above is my invention, .T have hereunto set myhand and affixed 1 ny seal this 21st day of October, 1870.

JOSEPH GONNER.. [L s] Witnesses:

THoMPsoN GLYDE, STEPHEN UsTICK.

